Ray Nathaniel Cates

1957 - 2009

Ray Nathaniel Cates, 52, husband of Jana Ruth (Wise) Cates, passed away at 7:25 p.m. on Sunday, September 6, 2009 at his home in Okesa.
Funeral services for Mr. Cates will be held at 2 p.m. on Thursday in the Chapel at the South Heights Cemetery, Sapulpa, Oklahoma. Committal prayers and interment will be directed by The Arnold Moore Funeral Service.
Ray will lie in state in the Drawing Rooms of The Arnold Moore Funeral Residence where family and friends may call for their visitation.
Ray Nathaniel Cates was born January 19, 1957 in Eureka, California. He was the son of Virgil Ray Cates and the late Dorothy Dawn (Leach) Cates. He received his early education in the Eureka area, before the family moved to Bartlesville at the age of 12 years old. He completed his formal education in the Bartlesville school system. Ray and the former Miss Jana Ruth Wise were united in marriage on December 16, 1976 in Oakhurst, Oklahoma where they resided until 1998. Ray was employed for a time with Pratt Pest Control in Bartlesville. In 1979, he became employed with Continental Industries, Coweta, Okla. as a supervisor for a period of approximately 10 years before becoming disabled due to an on the job accident.
Ray was a devoted son, husband, father and grandfather who will be missed with his untimely passing. He loved all his family and the times spent with them in the out-of-doors hunting and fishing.
Surviving are his wife, Jana Ruth, of the family home; one daughter, Janice Marie Sharp and husband John, Tulsa, Oklahoma; father, Virgil Ray Cates, Copan, Okla; daughter-in-law, Johnna "Crickett" Fletcher, Sapulpa, Oklahoma; grandchildren, Shane Gaasch, Angela Gaasch, Brent Gaasch, Stefanie Gaasch, Jason Cates, Isaiah Cates, Jacob Cates, step-grandson, John Fletcher; brothers, Don Lorenzo Cates and Marsha, Ed Leon Cates and Sharon; and James Bartlett Cates and Janet, all of Bartlesville; and sister, Terry Lee Cates, Bartlesville. In addition to his mother, Dorothy Dawn Cates, Ray was preceded in death by his sons, Elbert Ray Cates and Jason Leon Cates; grandparents, Grace Ray (Sears) Cates and Virgil Nathaniel Cates; and uncles, Frank Sears and Robert Sears.